Top gaokao scholars saddle up for a ride in the park

In today's trending, top scoring gaokao students dressed as traditional scholars ride through their hometown, a Sina Weibo user draws and circulates cartoons to help find her missing grandmother, a new graduate who needs to use up credit on her bus card buys fares for fellow passengers and a mother forgets to take her baby with her at a Beijing subway stop.

A Chinese staff member seals the divorce certificates of a couple at a marriage registration center in Harbin city, northeast China's Heilongjiang province, March 6, 2013. [Photo/IC]

'Divorce wave' creates 1-month waiting list in Guangzhou

Divorcing couples in some regions in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou now have to wait for one month to file, Guangzhou Daily reported Friday.

Couples have to wait for at least one month in Tianhe district and half a month at Haizhu district.

In Tianhe district, all appointments for divorce have been booked and people have to wait until August 9 to get divorced, according to the online appointment system for the city government on Thursday. In Haizhu district, all days have been booked for this month but July 23. And Baiyun district only had August 3 and 5 available before August 8.

"We are severely shorthanded," claimed an unnamed official with a district marriage registry center.

According to a registry official with Yuexiu District, divorces have increased in recent months from 10 a day to 20-30 a day.

An official with Haizhu District Civil Affairs Bureau saw an up side to the situation. He said that couples who had come to the decision hastily would have a chance to think it through.

Statistics released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs showed that 3.64 million couples divorced in 2014. The divorce rate in China has increased for 12 consecutive years since 2003. The rate was close to or over 30 percent in Beijing, Tianjin, Guangzhou and other big cities in 2013.

In our next story,top gaokao scorers dress like ancient scholars